The All Blacks did not just need a win on Saturday night at Eden Park, they needed a performance to give concerned New Zealanders some confidence for the season going forward.
They delivered both, thanks to a stunning first half that saw them run out 42-10 winners over an Argentinean side that seemed shellshocked from the opening tackle.
"Everything we tried to do the week before, we did. It was just a really great mindset, we all brought in," said coach Scott Robertson on his team's effort, after a week of heavy scrutiny following their shock 38-30 loss to the Pumas in Wellington.
"We created more opportunities and executed … we played through the front door, banged it down and created opportunities out back."
The All Blacks scored six tries in the win, with two to Will Jordan in his first test start since last year's World Cup. All were the result of excellent decision-making, most notably by Damian McKenzie in a performance that Robertson called his "best".
Damian McKenzie celebrates his try. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
"DMac was good, especially in the wet with his kicking. He was really sharp, it was his best game."
On the weather, which saw Auckland drenched in rain for most of the day, Robertson said he thought "the wetter, the better", which made the relatively low handling error count even that more impressive.
However, it was not quite perfect. The All Blacks failed to score again after Jordan's try early in the second half, but while the result was clearly out of reach for the Pumas, the emptying of both benches had disrupted the game's flow.
"We should've buried them in the garden … but that's sometimes that happens. We played the whole squad and lost a bit of rhythm doing it," said Robertson.
Beauden Barrett of New Zealand celebrates his try. Photo: Andrew Cornaga/www.photosport.nz
"We've created a lot of opportunities in all of them and haven't taken them … last week at 20-8 we gave them a lot of points. We've just got to make sure that it's there, what we're doing … innovate and grow."
Asafo Aumua's yellow card was another blot on the copybook, however it was more bad luck than malicious when his head collided with Matthew Carreras. It was reviewed and was not upgraded to a red, it is notable that it is the first yellow card the All Blacks have received this season and it came very late in the game.
Some of the talk this week had been around the need for big ball carrier in the All Black pack, something that captain Ardie Savea went about answering with a huge display on attack. He said post-match that he felt "tired", which is understandable given his high work rate.
"It brings the best out of people, good challenges. Not relying on a loss to get a response and bringing that edge," Savea said.
The All Blacks now take a week off before reassembling and travelling to South Africa for two tests against the world champion Springboks.
The Boks had another solid win over the Wallabies overnight, 30-12 in Perth, which means they sit top of the Rugby Championship ladder after two games each.
